At a recent media event in Johnston, Iowa, DuPont Pioneer announced that it is doubling the number of Optimum AQUAmax drought-tolerant corn hybrids from 22 in 2012 to 44 in 2013. With the U.S. Drought monitor continuing to show drought as a major problem well into this month, more and more growers are asking about drought-tolerant hybrids, says Reed Mayberry, senior marketing manager, DuPont Pioneer. ...More

It is that time of year for South Dakota farmers to place orders for corn seed. Nathan Mueller, SDSU Extension Agronomist says two questions many growers should ask are: 1) How many hours do I spend selecting corn hybrids? 2) Who and what influence my decision?
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In December, Farm Industry News will publish its 2013 Buyers’ Forecast issue, chockfull of predictions about pricing and supply of farm inputs for the upcoming year. In my tangential approach to researching this story, I stumbled across the term “neuromarketing,” described as a new field of marketing research that studies buyers’ brains and measures their body’s response to marketing stimuli....More

As U.S. corn producers continue the push toward more and more corn acres — surpassing 96 million acres in 2012 — the pressure on the entire production system has mounted exponentially. Nowhere is that pressure felt more than at the beginning of the corn cycle — growing hybrid corn seed....More

Beck's Hybrids reports the company planted 150% of anticipated seed needs in 2012. In addition, the seed was planted over a period of time and in different geographies. As a result, Beck's expects to meet their customers' needs for seed corn in 2013, according to Ashley Woodward Fischer of Beck's....More

Recent rains in some parts of Ohio may not be enough to stem the damage from high temperatures and drought conditions during corn pollination, according to Peter Thomison, Ohio State University Extension specialist....More